We were proud to sponsor the Inclusive Leadership Award at the very first Proud Preston Awards 2026, a fantastic evening celebrating the people and organisations who make Preston what it is.
Held at Barton Manor Hotel, the event brought together over 200 individuals from across the city’s business, community, charity and public sectors. It was great to see so many familiar faces in the room, alongside plenty of new ones too.
Celebrating What Matters
The Inclusive Leadership Award recognises those who are creating opportunities, and Cotton Court Dierctor, Rob Binns, presented the award to category winner Mel Close.
Mel Close is a CEO and Councillor known for championing inclusion and equality across Preston. Through her work, including leading on the 2025 Community Hub and supporting initiatives like Disability Pride, she continues to create opportunities, amplify underrepresented voices, and drive meaningful change in the community.championing diversity, and making a genuine difference across Preston.
Full list of winners:
Inspirational Young Leader: Grace Gudgeon (Founder of Girls Who Walk Preston)
Volunteer of the Year: Grace Gudgeon
Lifetime Hero: Guy Topping (35+ years of business/community commitment)
Environmental Hero: Annie Wynn BEM (Let’s Grow Preston)
Charity Hero: Gemma Roberts (Domestic abuse support)
Inclusive Leadership: Mel Close (CEO/Councillor supporting Disability Pride)
Arts & Culture Hero: Andrew Sumner (Theatre practitioner)
Community Initiative: Bounce Back Netball
Education Hero: John Hankin (Head Teacher, Corpus Christi)
Huge congratulations to all the winners and finalists, everything recognised on the night was so well deserved.
We’re proud to have been part of the first event and to support something that reflects the kind of city Preston is.
Here’s to many more to come 🏆